Spinous dorsal represented by a series of small spines, free from membrane; soft dorsal fin triangular and placed well back on body; caudal fin small and finely forked; anal fin spine small and broad, the fin mirroring the soft dorsal fin; pectorals truncate (Ref. 6885). Pale mottled brown, varying from olive green to yellow brown dorsally; creamy white ventrally; a bright silvery patch between operculum and pectorals extending to throat and bounded above by a dark band that extends forward through eye to snout; breeding males with bright red snout and phosphorescent snout (Ref. 6885).